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Patented Jan. 14, 1890.

INVENTOR. j: .Ezyen eLJ0w e.

WITNESSES. 7f? Q. aL m,

UNITED STATES EUGENE L. HOWE, OF CLEVELAND,

OIIIO, ASSIGNOR TO THE EBERHARD MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

CARRIAGE-STEP.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 419,198, dated January14, 1890.

Anplication filcfl March 23, 1889. Serial No. 304,446. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EUGENE L. HOWE, of Cleveland, in the county ofCuyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and" usefulImprovements in Carriage-Steps; and I do hereby declare the following tobe a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as willenable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make and usethe same.

My invention relates to an improved carriage-step as an article ofmanufacture, such carriage-step having one or more series of parallelgrooves milled or otherwise cut in the face of the step, the interveningridges thus formed being brought to a sharp edge. In case of two seriesof grooves the dilferent series cross each other to divide theintervening ridges into teeth, the object being to prevent the foot fromslipping on the step. Heretofore various devices have been employed forsuch purpose-for instance, a series of ridges cast integral on the faceof the step; but any ridges or projections that are formed in castingare necessarily too blunt to be effective, such blunt edges takinglittle hold of the hard smooth surface of the sole of the shoe, andespecially in the presence of ice and snow such steps become slipperyand dangerous.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a plan. Figs. 2 and 3 areelevations in section,

respectively, 011 line so 00 and y y. Fig. 4 is a plan showing but oneseries of grooves.

The shape of the carriage-step, and whether plain or ornamental, ofsolid face or of openwork, is immaterial.

The improvement consists of a carriage-step having one or more series ofslight parallel and preferably V-shaped grooves milled or otherwise cutin the face of the step, the grooves of a series being in such closeproximity to each other as to bring the intervening ridges tosharpedges, and in case of two series of grooves the different seriescrossing each other usually at right angles, so as to form a series ofpyramidal sharppointed teeth. In Fig. l the grooves (1. a and Z) I) areshown crossing each other approximately at right angles, although thegrooves might cross each other more or less obliquely to formdiamond-shaped teeth, either of which will answer the purpose. In Fig. 4only one series of grooves a a are shown, and these should run crosswiseof the step. The single series of grooves shown in Fig. a are effectivein preventing the foot from slipping endwise off of the step, but arenot so effeetire in preventing the footfrom slipping laterally as theteeth aforesaid. The grooving is more cheaply done with a milling-tool,such tool being long enough to reach across the step,

so that the grooves of one series are milled at one operation. Thesegrooves are usually only about a sixteenth of an inch (more or less) indepth, and where the step is provided with ornamental raised work, as isfrequently the case, the milling-tool is set so as to engage only theextreme upper portions of such raised work.

hat I claim is- As a new article of manufacture, a step for carriages,made of a single piece of met-a1, the upper surface of which is cut toform sharp projections with inclined sides, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I sign this specification, in the presence of twowitnesses, this 2d day of November, 1888.

EUGENE L. HOlVE.

Vitnesses:

M. O. SENsENY, W. II. BERscH.

